Natural Disaster

Sorry if this has been talked about already before,but what would the situation be if a natural disaster hit?We all have supplies to keep us alive for >3 months inside our homes,and Im wondering how long could a type 1 diabetic live without his/her insulin?

4 replies

Yes it has been spoken of many several times on DC. I used the search engine on the discussions home page, typed in "emergency" and got this multi page answer. http://www.diabeticconnect.com/discussions?qu... . Some of these hits are those who just have that word in the title or original post or key words. Others have a wealth of information regarding different types of emergencies.

It is good to bring this topic up from time to time as some folks here are new and may not have thought of it before, and it is also good for some of us DC long-timers to refresh our memories also.

As an insulin dependent Type 1, I could not live long without it. Were I to find myself without insulin, I would try to eat as little as possible because my body would be unable to metabolize the food I ate which would cause high blood sugar levels, ketacidosis, and eventually, death. Most insulin can remain unrefrigerated for about a month as long as it is not subjected to very high temperatures…after one month without refrigeration the quality/effectiveness would deteriorate. So, I guess the answer to your question would depend entirely on the magnitude of the natural disaster and where each of us would find ourselves afterwards and with what services available to us and how soon infrastructure can be restored…so many variables Your discussion certainly provides food for thought (no pun intended).

I think it may actually get more complicated than that. I'll leave anyone insulin dependent to deal with that part of your discussion, but here's my view on the impact of a natural disaster.

I am type 2 controlled by exercise and diet. One of the things that drives my BG up is the chemical load in foods. I control that as much as possible by eating organic foods and avoiding any/all additives by cooking from fresh, raw products. Even so, it's not pristine and I know some slip in.

After a natural disaster, I would assume food supplies would probably be negatively affected and fresh food not as readily available, so I have done the following: in addition to the usual disaster food supplies and water, I also keep a three month supply of the medications which I have used when I was eating a "normal" diet, i.e., not an organic one, on the assumption that the change in diet would again make my BG harder to control. In the case of relocation to public facilities like happened in Japan with the earthquake and tsunami, inevitably the food is very high in carbohydrates. Me, on a diet of spaghetti and mac & cheese, would not be a healthy sight!